Wayne Rooney wants former Man Utd man as first Birmingham City signing as he eyes promotion push
Wayne Rooney is reportedly keen to sign former England teammate Jack Butland for Birmingham City after becoming the Championship club’s new manager.
Rooney controversially replaced John Eustace as Blues boss on Wednesday. They currently sit in sixth place in the league table and will be hopeful of finishing in a playoff spot.
Birmingham should have some money to play with in the January transfer window after US-based Shelby Companies Limited completed a full takeover of the club in July.
It seems that Rooney is keen to bring in a new goalkeeper to provide competition for John Ruddy, who is already past his prime at the age of 36.
Now, according to the Sun, Butland has emerged as a target for Birmingham.
The goalkeeper began his career with the Blues, making 46 appearances for them overall. He has had stints at several clubs including Stoke City, Barnsley, Leeds, Derby and Crystal Palace, before joining Manchester United on loan from Palace in January 2023.
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Butland played alongside Man Utd legend Rooney once at international level while attending multiple England camps together.
Butland never made an appearance for Man Utd, and signed for Rangers permanently in June. He has made eight league appearances for the Scottish side this season, keeping five clean sheets in the process.
The Sun claim that Butland is pondering his future in Glasgow just four months after signing for with Rangers, as manager Michael Beale was sacked two weeks ago. The Gers moved on Sunday to replace Beale with Belgian boss Philippe Clement.
The report confirms that Rooney wants to sign a new ‘keeper in the January transfer window and is keen to capitalise on Butland’s apparent uncertain future.’
It’s thought that Butland could be swayed by the prospect of returning to St Andrew’s in the Blues’ bid to return to the Premier League under Rooney.
With that in mind, it will be interesting to see if Birmingham do make a concrete bid for him in January and whether they can tempt Rangers into a sale.
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